Floor numbering
Floor numbering is the numbering scheme used for a building's floors. Floor numbering schemes North American scheme In this scheme, the "first" floor is the floor at the ground level and the floor above it is the "second" floor. On some buildings, floors below ground floor are usually marked as basement (B) but some buildings also marked these floors as minus (-), for example; minus one (-1), minus two (-2) and so on. In few cases, the floors below ground floor are marked as lower ground (LG) or sub basement (SB) though this is uncommon. This scheme is used in some part of the United States and Canada, some Latin American countries, Russia and former Soviet Union countries, China (excluding Hong Kong and Macau), South Korea, Japan, Singapore and parts of Indonesia. USSR Variant Buildings in former USSR countries (including those in Europe such as Estonia) often use the North American scheme, but call the storey immediately below the ground floor "0'". European scheme In this scheme, the "first storey" or "first floor" is the level above ground level. The floor at ground level is usually called "'0" or substituted by the first letter of the local language's word for ground (i.e. "G'" in Britain or "'E" for Erdegeschoss in Germany) This scheme is used in the United Kingdom, most European countries, Mexico, Cambodia and former British colonies. There is a set standard as per EN81-70 for the ground floor button to be protrude a different amount & have green coloration to indicate that this is the floor with the quickest route to the outside of the building. This is not always the case, for example in lifts which don't go to the ground floor. The similar term also apply for the "Design Manual: Barrier Free Access 2008 (設計手冊：暢通無阻的通道 2008, BFA 2008)" standard by Buildings Department in Hong Kong, China. A "star" (☆''') is often included in the ground floor button to indicate a main entrance level. Common floor numbering systems These are some common floor numberings used in buildings as well as elevators. Minus (-) '''Minus (-) is used to depict floors below ground floor 長沙灣長發大廈通力升降機. Sometimes minus is used as a substitution to basement (B), lower ground (LG) or sub basement (SB). Minus is also commonly used in buildings with destination dispatch elevators. Whitebuttonsblackpanel.png|Kone Elevator button with showing "Minus" for basement floor. A A''' is usually used to depict an extra floor, such as 3A being an additional third floor. It is also used to depict an apartment floor. Sometimes, it can be used to omit unlucky floor numbers. Mitsubishi CBV-C210 Panel.jpg|A Mitsubishi elevator with an extra third floor. 1983 Schindler M Line Button Car Touch HK Freight.jpg|A Schindler elevator with an extra eight, eighteen, twenty-third and thirty-third floor. B '''B also known as basement, usually used to depict floors below ground floor. It is widely used in most buildings. An additional basement below is often marked as LB while above is UBFujitec Hydraulic Lift/Elevator 2 富士達油壓式升降機2. UB ' may also means which is an extra "base" floor above the ground floor. Meaning of basement in foreign countries by their native language: *'K: Keller (German), Kelder (Dutch/Estonian), Kælder (Danish), Kjeller (Norwegian), Källare (Swedish), Kellari (Finnish) *'S' (Spain): Sótano * SS '''(France): Sous-sol (Portuguese): Subssolo * '''P:' '''Porão (Portugese), Piwnica (Polish) *'U''' (Germany): Untergeschoss ("Underfloor") *'П': Подвал (Russian), Падвал (Belarussian), Підвал (Ukrainian) * М '(Bulgaria): Мазе * 'υ (Greece): υπόγειο KutaParadiso floorbuttons.JPG 1970s Mitsubishi hall floor indicator mahjong.jpg|Mitsubishi elevator with basement floor (B). Bc27.jpg|Fujitec elevator with two basement floors (B1 and B2). Mid-1990s Mitsubishi car station HK.jpg|Mitsubishi elevator with two basement floors (LB and UB). Another 1960s Mitsubishi button.jpg|A 1960s Mitsubishi elevator with an upper base floor. G G''' or '''GF usually means ground floor. This floor numbering is widely used in buildings using European scheme. In some case, the letter G may be replaced into zero (0) in Europe or one (1) in America. A "star" (☆') is often included in the ground floor button to indicate a main entrance level. In foreign countries, ground floor is usually referred to by their native language, for example: *'BG (Dutch): begane grond (lit. "walked-upon ground") * BV '''(Swedish): Bottenvåning ("ground floor") * '''D (Indonesia): dasar/lantai dasar ("ground floor") *'E' (Germany): Erdgeschoss ("ground floor") (Swedish): Entrévåning ("Entrance floor") *'PB' (Spain): planta baja or planta baixa ("bottom floor") *'PT' (Italy): piano terra (lit. "ground floor") *'RC' (France): rez-de-chaussée ("street level") * S '(Danish): Stuen ("ground floor") * '''T '(Brazil): Térreo (Ground) * '''P,' PK '(Finland) Pohjakerros ("ground floor") * כ''' (Israel): כניסה ("Entrance") * '''ק (Israel): קרקע ("Ground") * ι''' (Greece): ισόγειο ("ground floor") Schindler_Linea_300_panel.JPG|Schindler Linea 100 fixtures set with "ground floor" button. Noticed a "star" which mean the main entrance level (Mandatory requirement in BFA 2008Design Manual - Barrier Free Access 2008, Division 19 - Lifts). Dewhurst US90-15 HK (Main).jpg|Dewhurst US90-15 "ground floor" button in Hong Kong. Notice that button have a "star" beside the G, which means "ground floor" is a main entrance level (Mandatory requirement in BFA 2008). Kone new large buttons.jpg|Dewhurst "New" US85 buttons with "ground floor" button. The "ground floor" words has etched on the car operating panel below the floor button. Floor_designator_HK_2000s.jpg|A "ground floor" floor designator‎‎ installed on the elevator's outside door jambs. File:TKE Focus pushbuttons.JPG|ThyssenKrupp Focus fixtures with independent "star" button. When pressed, the floor zero (0) button (on the other words, "ground floor") will also illuminated. R-Series panel HK.jpg|Schindler Elevator with digital indicator which showing "zero" for ground floor (as the older 7-segmented digital indicator cannot display English letter). 1994 Hitachi 85 Hall.jpg|Hitachi Elevator with digital indicator which showing "zero" for ground floor (as the older 7-segmented digital indicator cannot display English letter). LaPorte, IN Thyssenkrupp Hydraulic Elevator in Outlook Cove (South Side)-0|ThyssenKrupp Aurora fixtures with a "star" beside the G on the braille plate, which means "ground floor" is a main entrance level. L '''L or LBToshiba Elevators @ Centurion Hotel Ikebukuro, Tokyo, Japan usually means lobby or level, e.g. level 1 is marked as L1. In some buildings with an additional lobby or certain floor below the ground floor, it is usually marked as LL (lower lobby or lower level). As same as "ground floor" (G'''), a "star" (☆) is often included in the lobby button for the elevator installed in the America to indicate a main entrance level. The another variant of the "lobby" is '''UL, means upper level, common in 2 floor buildings like shopping malls, dept. stores and supermarkets, but can also stand for upper lobby, which is an extra "lobby" floor above the main lobby floor. An example of the building that uses UL floor is Interchange 21, Bangkok【R01】Kone Elevators @ Interchange 21, Bangkok「Front Carpark」 LG black buttons ARS.JPG OTIS Series 1 button panel.jpg GoldStar floor buttons Hotel Ciputra Jakarta 2.jpg 1990s Mitsubishi car station Standard.jpg|Mitsubishi elevator with two lower ground floors (L1 and L2). LG LG usually means lower ground, which is an extra "ground" floor below the main ground floor. In some cases, lower ground can be more than one floor, but usually not more than five lower ground floors (e.g. LG1 and LG2). Example of buildings with more than one lower ground floor are Festival Walk in Hong KongSchindler Hydraulic Lift/Elevator 2 迅達油壓式升降機2 and ifc Mall in Shanghai2011 Recording - Schindler MRL Elevators at ifc Mall, Shanghai. The other variant of the floor LG maybe substituted as floor '-0'. Toshiba HungFaiHouse CatStation 2.jpg ThyssenKrupp MRL Hall LED floor indicator.jpg File:1992_Mitsubishi_handicap_car_station_HK.jpg|Mitsubishi elevator with three lower ground floors (LG, LG1 and LG2). Kone fail indicator.jpg|Kone fireman's elevator with one lower ground floor. However, the floor indicator on this floor cannot show the "L" word. OTIS HallStation ShuiCheunOEstate.jpg|Otis elevator with two lower ground floors (LG1 and LG2). A set of "lower ground floor two" floor designator‎‎s also installed on the elevator's outside door jambs. M M''' or '''MZ is commonly known as mezzanine, which is an intermediate floor between main floors of a building. A lower mezzanine is often marked as LMBUSY Hyundai MRL Elevators at Lippo Mall Kemang, Jakarta, or a mezzanine ground is often marked as MG though this is uncommon. In rare cases, it may refer to metro'''Examples are some malls near BTS Skytrain in Bangkok that have a skywalk between station and a mall. Flat KDS 300 round buttons_HKK.JPG Schindler STEP EB111.jpg|Schindler Elevator with digital indicator which showing '''MG for mezzanine ground floor. P P''' may refer to as '''parking (for multi-purpose building with the floors for car park or parking garage), pool (in some hotels), podium (the leisure spaces in the housing estate, but built above ground floor), or platform (usually appeared in train station) floor. Multiple parking floors are usually marked as P1, P2 and so on. CP '''may also be used, meaning "car park" (same meaning of "parking" Britain English), or '''PL, meaning podium level or pool level. File:TOSHIBA_Vandal-resistantfixtures_3.JPG.jpg|A Toshiba elevator with podium (P) floor. Linea100 Black Internal Ind.png R R''' is usually known as '''roofToshiba Traction Elevator at Car Park, Hang Tsui Court, Chai Wan, Hong Kong or rooftop. Sometimes RF may also be possible to be used. Schindler 3300AP FIGS CarFloorIndicator Linea WDistrict.png UG UG means upper ground which is an extra "ground" floor above the main ground floor. KDS300-AUS Bekizaar-SBY.jpg 70s Mitsubishi customized indicator.jpg Sabiem Call Sation PB5 R125.JPG Other floor numberings *'C': ConcourseOTIS Traction Elevator at Po Wah Buiding, Central, Hong KongMitsubishi Traction with Semi-auto door elevator in Lee Shing Building, Prince Edward, Mong Kok, Kowloon, Hong Kong, used in some train stations and double deck (lower deck) elevator or Casino, in Casinos. *'F'/'FB': FootbridgeNewly Installed Otis MRL Traction Elevator旺角橫跨亞皆老街及塘尾道行人天橋SIGMA升降機葵涌興芳路行人天橋Sigma無機房升降機, used in some pedestrians footbridge. *'H': Helipad or other special floor. *'PH': Penthouse floor.Hitachi Traction Elevator at Ka Bo Building, North Point, Hong Kong *'S' or SL: Street level, used in some train stations, or Subway, for some pedestrian tunnels.旺角彌敦道及弼街交界行人隧道KONE升降機 *'T': Terrace, used in some apartment buildings. *'MTR': Abbreviation of Mass Transit Railway (MTR) in Hong Kong, China. For the floor in the adjacent building directly connected to the MTR station.九龍塘又一城Schindler升降機 FUJI White buttons HK.jpg|FUJI elevator button with showing "C" for Concourse. File:UpperNgauTauKokEstate_LT_Toshiba_Hall.jpg|Toshiba elevator floor indicator with showing "FB" for Footbridge. Domain Otis MTR floor.jpg|Otis elevator floor indicator with showing "MTR" for the floor in the adjacent building directly connected to the MTR station. See also *Unlucky floor numbers in elevators *Floor designators Category:Elevator